Japan and Qatar will announce an agreement this week to cooperate in a range of energy projects, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun said Monday October 29.

The announcement will be made by Qatari oil minister Abdullah Al-Attiyah, who is to visit Tokyo this week, and Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Takeo Hiranuma, the newspaper said.

Under the accord, Japanese firms will take part in projects to develop environmentally friendly natural gas in Qatar, the business daily said. Qatar will grant preferential treatment to Japan in exporting liquefied natural gas, the daily said. The Japanese government is to help raise the funds for such efforts, it said. — (AFP, Tokyo)